


A Man of Multiple Faces

by impossiblefangirl



Category: Doctor Who
Genre: AU, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-25
Updated: 2016-01-25
Packaged: 2018-05-16 06:11:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5817193
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/impossiblefangirl/pseuds/impossiblefangirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A full-time worker at UNIT, Martha Jones arrives at the Tower of London after a report concerning the Black Archives. The last person she expects to run into is the Doctor ... and with a new face, too ...</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Man of Multiple Faces

Martha Jones flashed her UNIT pass at the Tower of London's security guard and walked smartly towards the central White Tower.  
She wasn't there for the Crown Jewels, or the ravens, or the Yeoman guard tours. No, Martha was there for one thing only: the Black Archives.  
'Kate Stewart?' she called, as the facial recognition software buzzed her in to UNIT's HQ.  
'Martha!' Kate smiled at her as she entered. 'We've been waiting for you.'  
'Oh,' said Martha, trying to recall exactly why she'd been late. 'Sorry.'  
'Not a problem - you weren't the only one,' Kate sighed. 'Martha, I hope you don't mind, but we've also called in a little ... professional help with this case.'  
'I'm professional,' said Martha, affronted.  
'I know that you are, but this man - well, he's had experience. I think you probably know that. And he's clearly off having more experience right now, as he's nearly five minutes late.'  
'Who are you talking about?' said Martha.  
Kate raised an eyebrow, pressing a few buttons on her iPad. 'Why don't you have a guess?'  
'Um ...' Martha thought about it. 'Jack Harkness?'  
'No. The last we heard he was in Gibraltar with a Silurian husband.'  
'Hm. I wasn't invited to that wedding. Hold on, I'm supposed to be guessing, aren't I?'  
'I do believe you are.'  
But Martha's next guess was interrupted by the doors to HQ suddenly bursting open.  
'Aha, Kate! Lovely to see you again. Now, I believe you called?'  
Martha looked the new arrival up and down in confusion.  
Kate had definitely implied that their 'professional help' knew Martha, but she had never seen him before in her life. He was tallish, with a bow tie, a quiff and a protruding chin. She would definitely remember if they'd met before - after all, who even wore bow ties nowadays?  
'Martha!' Quiff Boy had turned to her and was smiling widely. 'I didn't know you'd be here - you,' he added mock-sternly, looking at Kate, 'did not mention that. Shame on you. Martha, it's fantastic to see you again. How are you?'  
He gripped her shoulders and kissed the air behind both her cheeks.  
'I don't mean to be rude or anything,' Martha said, taking a cautious step backwards, 'but who the bloody hell are you?'  
'I told you you wouldn't guess,' Kate muttered.  
'Oh, don't be silly, Martha - I mean, you must recognise me.'  
'I really don't.'  
His face fell. 'Oh, come on. I'm not even dressed as a monk this time.'  
Martha gave him a withering look. 'Kate, he's just weird. Who is he?'  
'That's the Doctor,' said Kate with a small smile.  
Martha stared at her. 'The ... who?' she whispered finally.  
Quiff Boy raised his eyebrows. 'That's a new one.'  
'Shut up!' Martha hissed. 'Kate, what are you talking about? This isn't the Doctor, the Doctor's not...' Her voice trailed off. 'Oh ... oh. Oh. Right. Multiple faces.'  
Quiff Boy grinned. 'Say hello to Face Eleven.'  
'Oh my god.' Martha shook her head. 'Seriously? You're ... you're him, you're ...'  
She looked up at the Doctor, who smiled cheerfully - he seemed to do that a lot - and waved.  
Martha held his eyes for a moment.  
Then she drew her hand back and smacked him.  
'Ow!' he said, taking several rapid steps backwards. 'What was that for? Blimey, you take after your mother, don't you - ouch!' he added, as Martha smacked him again.  
'Have you any idea,' Martha hissed, 'how long you've been away?'  
The Doctor frowned. 'Well ... Kate, what year is it again?'  
'It's 2013,' said Kate obligingly.  
'2013,' the Doctor muttered. 'So ... um. Around ... five years?'  
'Give or take,' Martha said, still glaring at him.  
The Doctor brightened. 'I suppose we ought to make up for lost time, then, shouldn't we?'  
'What?' Martha raised an eyebrow. 'What happened to the last one, then?'  
The Doctor's face clouded over. 'They went back in time,' he said finally.  
'They? Not a love interest, then?'  
'Very married. So no.'  
'And ... what? You just decided you'd come back, after six years?'  
'Five.'  
'I think it's six,' Martha said, and the Doctor didn't argue.  
'So -'  
'So,' Martha interrupted, 'why are you here?'  
'Kate called me,' the Doctor said. 'In fact, I seem to remember she said someone had broken into the Black Archives, which maybe ought to be our priority in the present circumstances!'  
'Well ...' Kate looked slightly shifty. 'I suppose it depends how you define "broken in".'  
Martha folded her arms. 'What do you mean?'  
'I mean I invented this entire ... problem, so that you two would meet again,' Kate said. 'Of course, I couldn't be sure which version of you I'd end up calling, Doctor, and I certainly didn't know if it'd be the one Martha knew, but I felt it was worth the risk.'  
'Well, I appreciate the effort,' said the Doctor, 'but why now, Kate? It's been ... as Martha keeps reminding me ... six years.'  
'Mickey,' Martha said without thinking.  
'Sorry?'  
'Mickey Smith, my husband, went missing in action two years ago. After a few weeks we discovered that he'd got himself trapped in Roman times. No way back.'  
'I'm sorry.'  
'Thank you.'  
'So ... am I right in thinking that nobody has actually broken into the Black Archives?' the Doctor said.  
'No,' said Kate. 'The Black Archives are secure. It was the only scenario I could think of to get you both to HQ.'  
'And now we are both at HQ, what now?' Martha demanded.  
'That,' said Kate, 'is entirely up to you.'  
'Martha?' The Doctor looked at her, and for a moment Martha saw a glint of his old self in his eyes. 'All of time and space, all over again. Some new stuff's turned up too, and there's even more new new stuff that's not even properly turned up yet. So ... what do you say?'  
'Let's get out of here,' was Martha's reply.  
They emerged out of the dungeons and into the warm summer day. Martha led the way up, out of the Tower's grounds, until they were standing in the middle of London together.  
'Suppose for a moment I forgave you,' said Martha. 'And I came back. How much of ... the old you ... the you you ... is there left?'  
'I'm a completely different person,' the Doctor said simply. 'Look, I wear a bow tie now. Bow ties are cool.'  
'Yeah, I had noticed that new accessory.'  
They fell into silence, and Martha carefully appraised the man standing next to her. He was new. He wasn't the old Doctor - her Doctor. But maybe a change was exactly what she needed.  
'Time machine, right?' she said. 'I don't have to miss anything?'  
'No,' the Doctor said, grinning. 'Any time's okay. Any time, any place, any date. You name it, Martha Jones, and we're there.'  
'In that case,' said Martha, smiling and looking over at the outline of the Globe Theatre in the distance, 'Mr Smith, will you accompany me to the theatre?'  
The Doctor mock-bowed and offered her his arm. 'Miss Jones, I will.'


End file.
